Thank you to NetGalley, Jayne Cowie, Random House UK and Cornerstone for this advanced copy!

As soon as I read the blurb for this book I knew I had to read it, so I was beyond delighted to be approved for it! The premise for this novel is everything! It’s not often we see that women are the ones free, safe and in charge, not being punished or prosecuted. Books like The Handmaid’s Tale, one of my favorites, or Vox, tells of a man’s world where women are almost sub-human, who are abused, oppressed with zero rights. After Dark turns everything we’ve read previously upside down and I. LOVE. IT! As well as all this, the murder mystery/thriller/suspense element just made it that much better. 

This was quite a quick and easy read. The writing flows between multiple points of view, and the addition of a dual timeline between past and present helps to build the suspense and mystery. With each character, you see a different opinion of Curfew, whether it be positive or negative.  The only character I had an issue with was Cass, I found her to be highly annoying and immature but I understand that she was supposed to be (I think?). The main reason that this is a 4 instead of a 5 is only because the ending felt a little bit rushed to me. I would’ve happily kept with it for another 50 pages or so if it meant a mind blowing conclusion.

After Dark is such a relevant book, especially with the way the world is right now. And how it has been. And how it probably will be for years to come, which is sad and exhausting. As enjoyable as it was, it’s very relatable and eye-opening. I really do wonder what it would be like to live in Cowie’s book for a day?

*Please research any trigger warnings prior to reading*

This book told a tale of a woman being murdered in a park after dark,where men had a curfew and tags to stop any violence towards women at night but could a regime like that really work?, because someone had violently murdered this woman..... Could it have been a woman that knew the victim?.
This book really made for interesting reading!. There were many characters who could have fit the profile of a murderer, male and female, they all had motives of varying levels. It really was written brilliantly and kept me guessing until the end!!.
Many thanks to Netgalley for the free arc book for an honest review.
#Netgalley, #randomhouse, #cowiejayne.

My thanks to NetGalley and Random House for a copy of “ After Dark” for an honest review.

I was really interested in reading this from the storyline., It seemed particularly relevant in the aftermath of Sarah Everard’s murder and the discussion into women’s safety , with the onus being put on the woman to protect themselves..A thought provoking book that I really enjoyed on the whole, although I did feel it was overly “ anti men” , not all men are bad nor are all women good .
I’d give this a 3.5 star rating.

A very unusual but thought-provoking novel by an author who appears to have strong views on the subject she writes about. The story is set at a time in the not too distant future where all men in the UK are subject to a curfew between 7 pm and 7 am and are tagged to ensure that they comply. It is a very one-sided view of our society and there are no male characters with any redeeming traits whatsoever.
On the surface, it is not a book for me a 77-year-old retired man, however, I found the story compelling and was interested to see an alternative view of British life. I too find it abhorrent that the females in our society are unable to feel safe on our streets at night. The news shows us all too often the reasons for this and another life ending too soon. I cannot though agree with the premise that all men are a danger to women and need to be controlled.
Our society is not perfect far from it but every argument can and does have two sides and as well as misogynists there are misandrists
This book should make us all think about our attitudes to and relationships with others of any sex and how we may be able to improve the society in which we live.

This is an interesting thought provoking book.. It’s set in a futuristic world and although described in the book blurb as dystopian, it’s really up to you the reader to decide if it’s dystopian or utopian! It’s certainly controlled!
All males are under curfew from 7pm till 7am from the age of 10 years old, which is when their electronic tags are fitted. This has been introduced to protect women as a high percentage of murders and violent crimes are committed by males.
It’s introduction has reduced the statistics.

The book centres around Sarah, Cass - her just turned 18 yr old daughter, Cass’ teacher Helen and her best friend Mabel who, like Sarah, works as a ‘tagger’. Sarah and Cass live in an all female community house called a ‘motherhouse’ where men are excluded. They have moved there after an incident involving Sarah’s husband, which resulted in her now ex-husband, Greg receiving a prison sentence. But he’s out now.

A woman is found murdered, beaten to death. Pamela is a police officer nearing retirement. She has been in the force a long time - before the introduction of the Curfew law. Unlike other officers she believes that it’s still possible that the murder has been committed by a man. Her boss refuses to consider it because they are all locked up under curfew, so it must have been a woman.

I liked this book, not so much for the murder/mystery aspect of it, although that was pretty well written and kept me guessing between two potential murderers right till the end! It was more the thought provoking side of it that captivated me. In the book, society is under a high degree of control which seems, as you read it questionable and ‘big brother-ish. In truth, we are already heading towards this. Everyone in the book carries a slate, which is to all intents and purposes just another name for a phone or tablet, which most of us already carry and which already makes so much of our ‘private’ lives available to authorities should they ever need to check up on us. Our mobile phones will tell the police where we were at any given time should we ever need an alibi - providing of course we carry them at all times! A large number of us already wouldn’t dream of going out without our phones (me included) and the younger generations are glued to their phones even more than my generation - although my sisters are pretty much on theirs every few minutes. Our written conversations are there for anyone in authority to read, our contacts, the web pages we browse, the things we buy online, the books we read, our bank details, our credit rating, our health statistics…….all available to someone with authority or know how!

So the book just takes things a bit further. Women, in this book, have all the power………..but with great power comes great responsibility! Due to the curfew, men are very limited in the jobs they can do and women have the jobs that require working in ‘curfew’ hours. This means men are more likely to be the homemakers. Would this be a good thing? Before couples can live together they have to go through ‘couples therapy’ and get a certificate to permit this, would that be a good thing? Women can also divorce their husbands in 24 hours, would that be a good thing?

This is such a debate inducing book. I just know I’ll be talking about it for a long time! It was likened to ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ but with women in control! It’s not nearly as extreme as that particular book or TV series but almost as contentious!

Definitely a great book for a Book Club!

My thanks go to Jayne Cowie, the author, the publishers and NetGalley for an advance e-reader copy. This review, however, is voluntary and entirely my honest opinion.

The world of After Dark is either a Utopia or a Dystopia, depending on your viewpoint. It takes place in future time, where men have a 7-7 curfew giving women far more opportunities in terms of careers etc as men are tagged and can't leave the house during those time frames. This legislation change follows a number of high profile murders of women by men, and are designed to keep women safe. Other legislation changes include requiring a licence to co-habit, which follows a period of counselling to ensure the couple are compatible and the man doesn't pose a danger.

The premise of this book intrigued me from the start and I couldn't put it down. I spent the whole book feeling uncomfortable, which I suppose is kind of the point as it encourages you to think about women's safety and the importance of liberty.

I work in a field that works with domestic violence victims and have seen some horrific things. I support the movement to protect women and am a strong feminist. I know the statistics around male violence and the shocking number of women killed by men each year. However, I also know that the majority of violence towards women is carried out behind closed doors by men known to the victims, with cases of murder or rape by strangers being very rare. I do not feel that these measures would stop the violence, and could possibly exacerbate it and push it further underground.

But this world left me cold. I have two young sons, and the thought of them being tagged and not able to leave the house of an evening really upset me. There are some upsetting scenes within the book around women not wanting male babies - which I imagine is a comment on countries where female babies are not wanted - and it left me feeling shook.

The writing was very good and kept me gripped from start to finish. I did guess both victim and offender fairly early on in the book, but I couldn't figure out whether this was a subtle nod to the inevitability of this type of offender and offence. I found it interesting that I couldn't decide whether the writer was on the side of this world, or commenting on the dangers of state control and pushing the narrative to suit the message given by the government. I believe this was written pre-Covid and wonder whether being locked down myself has changed my views on these measures. Overall, an important book and one that left me feeling uncomfortable and asking questions.

What an interesting and clever book!
Set in the near future, this psychological thriller turns the issue of violence against women on its head.
The age-old issue of why women should be expected to stay home after dark, avoid parks and empty streets, not go out alone and be on their guard to avoid violence from males is addressed. Why shouldn't men have to stay indoors instead? In this book, all males from 10 years of age are tagged and have to observe a 7pm to 7am Curfew.
To avoid domestic violence in the home, all couples have to attend cohabitation assessment meetings and work towards getting a Cohab certificate prior to living together.
Then a woman's body is found in a park. Characters are introduced and we are kept in suspense as to which one has been murdered. The police assume the killer is a woman. After all, men would have been under Curfew at the time the murder occurred, wouldn't they? Close to retirement, police officer Pamela is convinced however that the killer is a man.
Excellent characters have their lives interwoven in a very clever way, whilst Pamela tries to find the killer.
I recommend that you read the Author's Notes too. Fascinating explanation of her thought process behind the book. 
This would be a brilliant Book Club book. So much to discuss.
I loved it!!

Such an interesting concept for a novel. After increasing male violence towards women, all men under the age of ten are placed under curfew and tagged. Anyone breaking curfew is imprisoned. Women are now safe to walk the streets at night. But then a woman is found brutally murdered. Who is she? Who could have done it? The murderer must be a woman because curfew works doesn’t it?
This was a real page-turner that kept me up reading into the early hours to find answers. My favourite character was Pamela, the police officer due for retirement, who remembers policing before the curfew. She seems to be the only one willing to question and to keep an open mind. I didn’t find the other characters very likeable. There were very few male characters and, except for one, they were complete scumbags.
I didn’t agree with all the sentiments but that can make for great discussion. What I found shocking was the women’s complete faith in the technology of curfew and the refusal to believe, or not wanting to believe, that it could fail. I found it a really interesting view of the future, but not one I’d want to live in – I’d be on the first train out to France!
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the review access.
#AfterDark #NetGalley

In a world where men and boys over the age of ten are under curfew from 7pm - 7 am women should be safe. Until a woman is murdered. It has to be a woman who committed the crime, right?
An interesting and thought provoking novel. A must read for fans of dystopia.

Thought this was such a thought provoking book and read it in just a couple of sittings.
A curfew is now in place for men as a way to curb gender based violence against women and can only go out between 7am - 7pm. They have to wear a tag which is monitored too
When a women's body is found in the park, Pamela who is just about to retire from the Police, feels certain a man committed the crime. How can that be though if it happened during the night when all men are meant to be inside?
I think this book is going to create a lot of discussion and hopefully around how do we end male violence against women. 2 women every week are killed by an ex or current partner in the UK, the numbers are too high. I have also been a victim of male violence and don't know many women that haven't experienced some kind of unwanted behaviour/assault and yet the justice system has decriminalised rape.
The only part I struggled with was that it makes out that all men liar/can't be trusted. For me, whilst I was nearly killed by 2 men, it has been men that have mostly helped on my healing journey

A bit of a different read - a country with a curfew for men between 7 pm and 7 am. Then a woman is found murdered. The culprit cannot be a man, since all men are tagged, and they are at home, or can it be? Interesting, different, drew me in immediately, but the ending was not the strength of this book. Well worth a read though!

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this interesting book

just as the first lockdown and before sarah everard happened this book was written and what an inpact it could have on the reader

as more and more women are attacked a new law comes into effect....curfew....men have to be home by a certain time and tagged...it seems to be working crimes against women are going down....

and then a body turns up....

could a woman have done this....or have the men found away round the system

the reality of curfew and men tagged has had an effect on a generation that have never witnessed crimes against women. and so many put their faith in the system working and also with the computerized way things are monitored should they believe in it but an officer of the old ways about to retire thinks that no system is infallible and with peer pressure against her, she investigates the crime with a more open mind but pressure mounts from above who want it solved quickly

interesting read that opens up quite a debate and also the notes at the end by the author is interesting...

An interesting topic showing a radical thought process. The issues of female insecurity through the violence of men and how the vurgew was put into place to solve it was unique. The idea that violence could only happen during the hours after 7pm at night was to me a very presumptive notion, the same as that violence only happens by unknown persons.
This story wound round so many preconceived ideas that all fell into being not supportive enough. I loved the idea of counselling before being able to live together, but again it showed that anyone can perform as expected toachieve whatever they want.
The story kept me wanting to know exactly who was the murdered woman, why and by whom as well as the embroiled family life and the Curfew. An excellent read with a superbly unexpected ending.

The story is set over two timelines, before and after the murder but all that is revealed is that the victim is a woman. But given that all men are tagged, it has to have been a women. Pamela is the police officer on the case and didn't think a woman did this.

This books explores the possibility of a curfew for men so women can feel safe on a night. Much like dystopian worlds this could never happen for millions of reasons so you need to be able to not think too much about the logistics and just see it for how it is. The story is told from various points of views and explores what could go wrong. Very thought-provoking read.

This futuristic, psychological thriller has the the same old family arguments of today
Can you imagine: curfew for all males 10 years and older, quiter roads and parks, where women can walk through parks at night? Life is very different for any male over 10 years old.
In order to cohabit, couples have to attend meetings and and work towards getting a Cohab certificate; the balance of responsibilty is equally expected from both men and women.
'Sex identification 99.9% accurate in a study of 10,000 pregnancies' - could you imagine?
In this very different world, frustration, humiliation and rules.
I loved reading this very clever book; I didn't want it to finish!

This was a quick read that I enjoyed based on the premise that men over the age of ten had to be tagged. Although the story is a little far fetched in as much as how this would ever be passed as a law, I enjoyed it. The characters were not likeable but that is often the case. The only question I had was that the majority of crimes against women were committed in the home. Don't read too much into this thought provoking book but just enjoy it.

I enjoyed this. It’s a similar concept to A Handmaid’s Tale but from a different angle. A utopian world where women rule and men are subject to curfew, with their movements severely monitored and restricted. It’s an interesting twist. I’ll definitely look out for more from Jayne Cowie

So, in the world of this book, women somehow got a law through a male-dominated Parliament to force all men to wear electronic tags. Men must be in their registered address by seven at night and stay there until seven the next morning. Since this limits the work they're able to do, women have drifted into power - apparently, we're never shown that. This is very specifically a UK only phenomenon; we're told about one character's parents who live in France and never visit because her father doesn't want to pay for a temporary tag.

We're told that this one simple change has put women in power over men, by ensuring that they can go out at night, walk home alone and so on. And I can see how that would be true. Certainly a lot of violence against women happens at night, in dark places. However, a lot of violence against women doesn't happen at night in dark places. How does the Curfew stop domestic violence? How does it give women any power at all? It means there are no false alibis, I suppose, but that's not helpful to the woman who's been attacked in a car park, or who's been beaten to death in her own home.

Apart from that; all the men here are horrible. The only one I feel at all bad for is Billy; we're told once that his Male Temper came out, but that's after literal weeks of Cass torturing him, and there's still no implication that he hit her or touched her at all. I think some shouting is the least she deserved. Everyone is is a violent, bullying, abusive mess of a man. I know that there are men like that out there, but there are also some men who are perfectly normal and nice. Where are they in this novel?

All in all, I liked the idea of this novel, but I think the execution leaves something to be desired.

I’m having a great run of thrillers recently. The blurb for Ater Dark is intriguing.

WELCOME TO A WORLD WHERE WOMEN HOLD THE POWER.

They dominate workplaces, public spaces and government.

They are no longer afraid to cross a dark car park, catch the last train, or walk home alone.

With the Curfew law in place, all men are electronically tagged and must stay at home after 7pm.

It changed things for the better. Until now.

A woman is murdered late at night and evidence suggests she knew her attacker.

It couldn't have been a man because a Curfew tag is a solid alibi... Isn't it?

My verdict:

@Jayne Cowie has written a book that is destined for the #bestsellers list. If you turned Handmaid Tale on its head, you get After Dark. Following the murder of a female politician, males (from the age of 10) are electronically tagged and legally bound to adhere to a curfew and automatically imprisoned if they break it. The idea is that is protects women. The reality is that the curfew limits their career choices, earning capacity and relationships with women. There is no doubt that women are safer but at what cost to humanity? After Dark is very thought-provoking dystopian style thriller in which the author deals with human rights, equality, abortion, and crime. It would be a wonderful choice for any book club.

This is a very interesting, thought provoking read. After Dark has an obviously Dystopian feel, while at the same time, having its roots and raison d’etre very much based in a familiar situation. The murder of a female MP, Susan Lang, made me instantly think of Jo Cox; while the Curfew of 50% of the population reminded me of the initial lockdown, where the furlowed were contained, while the essential workers worked themselves into the ground.

We know right from the very outset, that there has been a murder. As well as not knowing the the murderer is, we also have no idea who the victim is either.
The main characters are four women, the story being most centred around Sarah, and her daughter Cass. Cass is a very familiar figure, a highly emotionally charged, angry teenage girl. Who is convinced she knows everything, and that everyone else is completely in the wrong.
The characters are very diverse, in their personalities; all provoking different feelings within me. The views of some of these characters are extremely polarising. I can imagine the views of the different readers to these characters, being just as polarised as the characters themselves.

This would be an excellent book for a book club discussion, as my own thoughts and reactions were in flux as the pages turned. Though I can imagine the views and debate becoming heated. The book raises so many varied and interesting questions in the reader, which I’m sure will be floating around in my mind quite a while.
I highly recommend this thought provoking, challenging 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ book by Jayne Cowie.